Russia Expands Ground War Into Ukraine's Dnipropetrovsk Region For First Time

Russia has escalated its ground offensive in Ukraine, announcing an advance into the Dnipropetrovsk region for the first time in the three-year war. This marks a significant territorial escalation amid stalled peace talks. Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said the advance serves as a warning to the Ukrainian government to accept realities on the ground. The country's defense ministry announced that forces from a tank unit had reached the western border of the Donetsk People's Republic and are continuing to develop an offensive in the Dnipropetrovsk region. Ukrainian military personnel reported slow Russian progress near the regional border, with reasons to believe that Russia could soon take a key city. The region has been under persistent strikes since Moscow invaded in February 2022. The Dnipropetrovsk region had a pre-war population of three million, and remains a key industrial hub. Ukraine's military has vowed to keep up resistance on the front lines. In stalled peace negotiations, Moscow has demanded that Ukraine recognize that the territories of the Donbass have now been absorbed into the Russian Federation. The Trump-backed peace process appears to be going nowhere, with the US president suggesting a more hands-off approach.